They of Ice
by Fae Faythe
Summary: Elsa is meant to be alone. Secluded because of her unnatural abilities over snow and ice, the Princess of Arendelle is isolated from the world, following rules to keep herself and her family safe. But then again, Jack Frost has never been good at following rules.
1. Prologue

Elsa was young when she saw him for the first time. She remembered everything about that night: Anna waking her up, playing in the snow, accidentally striking her baby sister with her magic, and going to visit the trolls. Everything was engrained into her memory, every detail. As soon as the trolls had taken Anna's memory, Elsa had moved out of their shared room and into one of her own. Exhausted from traveling through the woods all night, she had fallen onto the unfamiliar bed and slipped into sleep almost immediately, tears freezing on her cheeks.

The next morning, she watched from her window as the majority of the staff made their ways from the castle, and the gates had been shut. Even as a child, Elsa had recognized the horrible significance of those gates closing for the first time in the history of Arendelle. She had done it. It was her fault that the maids, cooks, and other keepers of the castles had been dismissed so suddenly; it was her fault that the gates were being closed.

"I'm sorry," she'd whispered, her fingers brushing the windowpane. Ice spiraled out from her fingertips, frosting the glass, and Elsa pulled her hand back with a shudder.

Days went by, then weeks, and months, and Elsa never left her room. She was too afraid, paralyzed by guilt. Meals were delivered to her, left by the door when she didn't answer, which she never did. Anna kept trying when the remaining cooking staff gave up, asking her to play, but Elsa was too scared to answer the door. Anna didn't know that her big sister had almost killed her, leaving a pale streak in her otherwise vibrant hair, and hopefully she never would. But Elsa wasn't willing to take that chance, so she kept the door closed.

"Elsa?" her father called through the heavy door one day, breaking the solitude. "Darling, are you awake?"

"Yes, Papa," she'd replied.

"The staff is gone," he said, kneeling before her, but not too close. "You'll be safe here, but only if you stay hidden. You understand?" Elsa nodded, too sad and numb to do much else. "Your…gift is dangerous. To you, to everyone around you. You have to keep it contained. Conceal, don't feel, don't let them know. Do you understand me?"

"Yes, Papa."

"And remember, you cannot tell your sister about your powers. She can't know, lest her injury represent itself." Elsa nodded again, another horrible shudder travelling through her. "Conceal, don't feel, don't let them know."

"Well, he's a bundle of laughs, isn't he?" a voice said when her father had left – and locked the door behind him. Elsa had almost jumped out of her skin, her blue eyes going wide when she turned to see a figure hanging from the chandelier. A tall, thin, white-haired someone. Elsa clapped her hand over her mouth to keep from screaming as the boy swung down and landed in front of her, a wide grin curving his lips. He was older than her, and considerably taller, holding a wooden staff. "Seriously, though. The way he's acting, you would think that you were a monster!"

"Who are you?" Elsa had demanded once she could speak again, her young voice high and shrill. The figure blinked, looked as startled as Elsa felt. Then he grinned again and snow began to fall from the ceiling.

"You can see me?" he asked, somehow swinging himself into the air and balancing precariously on the curved end of his staff. He peered down at her, his eyes wide and impossibly blue, like he couldn't believe it.

"Who are you?" Elsa had asked again, a little strength returning to her voice. "And what are you doing in my bedroom?"

"You can see me!"

"Of _course_ I can see you!" Elsa burst out, anger outweighing fear. "Who are you?"

"My name's Jack," he said, leaping off of his staff and bending into a low bow. "Jack Frost, at your service, Princess Elsa."

"Jack Frost?" she'd parroted. "But that's just a fairy tale." Something her mother used to tell her, back when Elsa first learned that she could control ice and snow. _Jack Frost is retired,_" she used to say, _looks like he picked you to replace him_. And Mama would pinch her nose, just like Jack Frost was said to, and Elsa would squeal with laughter until snowflakes rained from the ceiling.

Jack frowned at her words. "Well that's just rude. And as it so happens, I am much more than a fairy tale. But you can see me!" he said, happy again. "I wonder why that is?"

"Can't everyone see you?" Elsa asked, inching closer.

"No…" Jack said, sounding sad. "No one's seen me…for as long as I can remember."

"You've been all alone?" Elsa said softly. She'd only isolated herself for a little over a month, but already she could feel the weight of the loneliness, like a dark spot on her heart.

"Yeah," Jack said, shrugging a little. He played it off well, but even as a little girl, Elsa could see the hurt there. No one liked to be alone.

"I'm sorry," Elsa said softly. "It must be awful to be alone." Jack didn't say anything in reply, which was really all the answer that Elsa needed. "How are you doing that?" she asked, gesturing to the snowflakes spiraling down on them. A thin coating dusted the carpeted floor, but Elsa wasn't bothered, and neither was Jack. At the question, the quiet sadness fled and Jack smiled again, a big, toothy smile that made Elsa want to return it.

"Born this way," he said, spreading his arms wide and spinning in a circle. Snowflakes danced out from his fingers, filling the air. Elsa gasped in delight, and one of the snowflakes landed on her palm and remained. She inspected it closely before letting it go again. "You can do it too," Jack prompted kindly. Elsa shrank away, but the snow flurries only increased.

"Stop," she whispered to herself. "Stop it!" Jack looked distressed, and knelt next to her.

"You're not bad, Elsa," he said soothingly. "These powers, they don't make you dangerous, or evil. They're just a part of you." Elsa didn't believe him, and he didn't press it. But he didn't go away either.

Princess Elsa of Arendelle was seven when Jack Frost came to visit her the first time. She was alone, guilt-ridden, and terrified of her powers. Jack said that he was a guardian, that he watched over children, though she was the first person to ever see him. She was meant to be alone, originally, she had wanted to be alone, but she wasn't. She wasn't alone, even when she felt like no one in the world could understand her, or accept who she was, because even though no one else could see him, Elsa had Jack.


	2. Chapter 1

"Are you sure that you have to go?" Elsa asked, hating the slight whine in her voice. At eighteen, she was no longer the child that had almost killed her sister. Throughout the neighboring nations, she was known for her elusive beauty: White-blonde hair, fair skin, and piercing blue eyes. Marriage proposals had been coming in since she was fourteen, but Elsa's parents, the king and queen or Arendelle, were sure to ward them off. Respectfully. But even so, Elsa was a princess. She was grown-up now. She shouldn't whine.

"It's only for two weeks," Mama said kindly. "You'll be fine." She kissed Elsa on the forehead and then went to say goodbye to Anna.

"Keep your gloves on," her father said sternly. "Remember, conceal, don't feel…"

"Don't let it show," Elsa finished for him, repeating the mantra that she'd heard hundreds of times since that day when she was seven.

"Good girl," Papa said. "We'll be back in two weeks. Stay out of sight and out of trouble." Elsa promised she would.

"Right, like you do anything else," Jack snarked, appearing by her side. Elsa bit the inside of her lip to stifle her giggle. She regained her composure for long enough to watch her parents walk through the palace doors – doors she hadn't been through in years.

"Don't _do _that!" Elsa snickered as soon as her parents were gone and Anna was out of earshot. Jack pushed her shoulder playfully, ice crystallizing where his fingers met fabric. "You know the rules: No showing up when my parents are here." Elsa knew that her powers were more volatile when Jack was around, and her parents never handled her "accidents" very well.

"Yeah, well, they're not here now!" Jack crowed, sweeping through the now-empty hall. He zipped through the air with a flurry of snowflakes, hanging from the chandelier like he had the first day they met. "When the parents are away, the snow-people will play! Whoo-hoo!" Snowmen appeared out of nothingness, dancing merrily until Elsa disposed of them with a wave of her hand.

"Jack, stop it!" she whispered. "Someone will see you!"

"Oh, calm down, Ice Queen," Jack said, cleaning up the mess of ice and snow that had dampened the carpet. "Look, no fuss."

"You're all fuss," Elsa grumbled, turning away from him and making as if to return to her room.

"Elsa," Jack moaned. "If you spend the next two weeks moping in your room, we're going to have words."

"You heard what my father said," she replied. "I have to stay hidden." Elsa thought of the last time Jack had talked her into "practicing" her magic. She'd nearly frozen the kitchen solid and Mama and Papa had gone ballistic. Not to mention that Anna had almost seen her do it. Luckily, Papa had distracted her long enough for Elsa and Jack to clean it all up. She'd confined herself to her room for a month afterwards. Jack had been miserable.

"I don't remember my father," Jack said petulantly, "but I could imagine that if I had all the magic of winter at my fingertips, he'd want me to use it."

"Not when you could hurt someone!" Elsa insisted. She knew that Jack was only trying to help, but his help was going to get someone killed. Her abilities were too dangerous. She combed her fingers through her hair, suddenly frustrated. With Jack, with her father, with herself.

"Elsa…" Jack said, a warning in his voice. The temperature in the hallway dropped dramatically and icicles sprouted from the ceiling as Elsa fumed. She was tired of everyone pulling her in hundreds of different directions. Mama and Papa insisted that she stay out of sight, Jack was always trying to get her to realize and relish her abilities, and Anna….

Anna. That was the worst of it. When Elsa's powers had first proven dangerous, she'd moved away from her little sister. Anna was sixteen now, willful, headstrong, and as beautiful as her sister, albeit differently. The summer to Elsa's winter, Anna's hair was more red than blonde, her skin dusted with freckles. Even their eyes, both blue in color, were radically different. While Elsa's eyes were cool and icy blue, Anna's were deep as the pools they no longer swam in when the weather grew warmer. The only thing they shared was their fair complexion, though Elsa's unblemished skin always glowed slightly, or looked frostbitten, depending on the light.

They were best friends, once, but no more. Elsa couldn't even look at her little sister without feeling guilt crushing her chest; each time she saw the snow-white streak in Anna's hair, she felt her blood go cold – colder than usual – and she burned with shame. Anna tried for years to get her sister back, but Elsa was paralyzed by fear. Any and every move she made could have deadly consequences, and she was determined to keep her sister out of the crossfire. She would not allow Anna to be a casualty because she couldn't control herself. But she couldn't control herself, that was the problem. She couldn't keep herself in check, she couldn't keep her powers at bay, and so she had to cloister herself off from everyone, even Anna, her baby sister. Elsa had missed her grow up. They were meant to be adolescents, teenagers, together, but she'd missed it already. And now, Mama and Papa were grooming Elsa to be queen, and Anna would be married and sent away, and then God only knew when they'd see one-another. Elsa was weak, and she'd lost her family and her best friend because of it.

Shadows flickered in her vision as Elsa felt her anger quickly slipping beyond her control.

"Elsa!" Jack shouted, grabbing her shoulders. Her eyes went wide as she felt Jack siphon off the ice building under and atop her skin, and quickly clamped down on her anger. "Breathe. Elsa?" Elsa knew that her eyes were glazed and unfocused, but she was waging a war within her own mind. Her anger woke the magic within her, and she was fighting to keep both under control. "Dammit, Elsa, don't do this to yourself again!" Jack pleaded, his fingers digging into her shoulders. How would she explain the bruises? Elsa wondered idly.

"Sorry," she rasped, her pupils dilating until her irises were almost invisible. She knew that Jacked hated this. Elsa cursed and doubled over, gasping in pain. She managed for force her door open and stumble into her room. "I'm okay," she said after a minute. "I'm okay." She didn't know who she was trying to convince – Jack or herself.

"I hate it when you do that," he said, his voice low. Elsa tried for a comforting smile and failed miserably.

"I know you do," she replied shakily. Jack called them "episodes," and Elsa has started to do the same. When she grew too emotional, or when her magic threatened to break from her control, she had to suppress it somehow. That _somehow _was by internalizing it – all of it. And that hurt. A lot. "But on the upside, that's the first time it's happened in a while."

"You're an idiot." Jack said, shaking his head. Elsa smiled, more successfully this time.

"Watch it," she teased. "That's the future queen you're insulting."

Jack grinned, happy that she was unhurt, though the fact that she chose to put herself through so much pain rather than learn to control her magic troubled him. It had for a long time. "Oh well, your Highness, forgive me," he said, bowing low before he sobered. "You stay here, okay? I'll go get you something to eat."

* * *

Elsa waited eagerly for her parents to come home. With them traveling, running the kingdom's affairs was left to her. She'd been preparing for it her entire life, but there was an amazing amount of work involved. Trade papers had to be reviewed, events had to be planned, the people's requests heard. It was overwhelming.

Jack, of course, was bored out of his mind. He popped in and out of the castle as he pleased, always trying to make Elsa smile when she was particularly stressed, just like he would when she was sad as a child. He suffered through the most arduous of court affairs, making faces at the boorish advisers over their shoulders. Many times, Elsa had to bite her cheek to keep from laughing. One day, though, when he appeared out of thin air, he wasn't smiling.

"What's wrong?" Elsa asked as soon as she was alone. No one else could see Jack, and the kingdom already thought that she was an odd recluse. If she was spotted speaking to invisible men, they'd all think she was crazy for certain. "Is it the Guardians?" Jack had often told her of his so-called "responsibilities" of spreading fun throughout the world. Once, when she asked why he spent so much time with her, he'd replied cheekily: "I'm the Guardian of winter and fun. And it looks like you've got too much of one, and not nearly enough of the other." She'd laughed at that.

But neither of them were laughing now. Elsa had never seen Jack look so somber.

"Elsa…" he said, blue eyes grim. "It's your parents. Their boat went down in a storm. They're dead."

* * *

**Wow. I never thought that this story would get so much positive feedback. Thank you guys so much. I'm totally obsessed with this ship and I've got a lot of ideas for this fic, so please stay tuned. **

**And review! A fic without reviews is a cookie without milk.**

**Stay golden, all**

**~Fae**


	3. Chapter 2

For a moment, Elsa just stared at him. Jack loved to play tricks on her – stupid jokes and gags, anything to make her smile – but his poker face was terrible. She could always tell when he was lying; his eyes would be too-bright and his lips twitched to keep from smiling. Bu none of his tells showed now. His blue eyes were dark and his lips pressed tightly together.

"I'm sorry, Elsa," he said softly. "I'm so sorry."

"You're wrong," she said, striving for confidence that she didn't feel. "Their ship was the best – it was made by the Southern Isles, for all the stars!"

"I…I saw it go down," he whispered.

"What?"

"I've been keeping tabs on them for you, to make sure that they were safe. I tried to save them, but…" he trailed off and looked down, his white bangs hanging in his eyes.

"You're wrong," she said again. "My parents are fine. They'll be home in a few days, you'll see."

"Elsa…"

"You're wrong!" he snapped. Jagged icicles sprouted from the ceiling and floor, ripping into tapestries and furniture. "You're wrong, Jack. My parents are safe. They'll be home soon."

They never came home. A courier arrived the next day, black-clad and solemn, to confirm what Elsa had refused to believe. Her parents were dead. They'd drowned when their ship went down in a freak storm. It was an accident, one that couldn't have been foreseen or prevented. Elsa knew that, but she still felt her chest contract with misery and guilt when she heard the words.

"Cover their portraits," Elsa said to the staff, holding her head up and keeping her voice even. "And make an announcement. The kingdom should know, and have a chance to grieve." She dismissed the messengers to spread the word, until only she and Anna were left in the hall.

"Elsa…" Anna said quietly, her voice quivering. "What are we going to do?"

"We're going to think of the kingdom," Elsa said coolly, not meeting her sister's eyes. "And we're going to keep moving."

"How can you be so calm?" Anna demanded, though the words were shaky and frail. "Mama and Papa…"

"They're gone." Elsa said shortly. "But we're still here. We need to stay strong, Anna. For the people."

"Elsa, what about _us_?" Anna cried. Elsa looked away pointedly.

"She's scared," Jack said, appearing by Elsa's side. "Don't cut her off." Breathing deeply, Elsa turned away from the both of them.

"We're going to be fine. We have to be strong now. It's what Mama and Papa would've wanted. Now if you'll excuse me." With that, she started up the stairs, keeping her composure.

"Elsa!" Jack yelled after her. At his voice Elsa started running, tearing through the halls with tears in her eyes, an icy trail following her as she ran. Ice crusted the walls and crystallized the doorknob of her bedroom when she threw it open. Elsa screamed wordlessly as soon as the door slammed shut. The gloves she wore to curb her deadly touch froze solid and shattered. The temperature dropped until the very air seemed frozen, and the walls and floor frosted over, patterned with icy fractals. She lost track of time as the magic took over, though she was dimly aware of Jack beside her, trying to talk her into calming down. Something inside her was dying, screaming in death; something else roared to life.

When she finally came back to herself, Elsa was in Jack's arms and he was stroking her hair, leaving a delicate trail of snowflakes. "It's okay," he murmured, over and over. "You're going to be okay."

"What am I going to do?" Elsa whispered brokenly. Tears leaked out of the corners of her eyes and froze solid before they trekked down her chin.

"You're going to be okay," he said again, more of a chant than anything.

"We're on our own now. I've got to be queen and…" Elsa trailed off, the words dying in her mouth. She didn't want to be queen, she _couldn't_ be queen. And now Anna would be more alone than ever.

"You're going to be a great queen. You're going to make your parents proud. Hey," he said gently, tipping her chin up so that their eyes met, identical icy gazes colliding. "You can make it through this, Elsa. You're the strongest person I've ever known. You'll survive this." Elsa nodded and he hugged her tighter to his chest. Rather than being disturbed by his lack of temperature and heartbeat, Elsa was comforted. She had Jack, like she'd always had. She would make it through this. She had to.

Elsa didn't move for hours, curled into Jack's side, trying to breathe, to process. Finally, a timid knock on the door broke through the silence.

"Elsa?" Anna's voice said from behind the door. "Please, I know you're in there. People have been asking where you've been…They say to have courage, and I'm trying to." She took a deep, rattling breath. "I'm right out here for you. Please let me in." Elsa buried her face in Jack's chest to keep from calling to her little sister. "We only have each-other…it's just you and me. What are we going to do?"

"Please talk to her," Jack pleaded. "Don't shut yourself away." Elsa detangled herself from him and curled against the door, pulling her knees tight to her chest.

"Do you want to built a snowman?" she murmured to herself, more tears sparkling in the corners of her eyes. Anna used to love building snowmen with Elsa, back when she knew about her abilities. Even when Anna's memories had been taken, her love of snowmen – and her sister – had not. She waved her hand and an old relic of the past appeared: Olaf, Anna's favorite snowman from when they were kids. Another snowman appeared beside it, one of Jack's making, but Elsa had already destroyed hers, and Anna was gone.

"Can you help me?" Elsa asked, standing up finally. She looked around her devastated bedroom. Snow still came down from the ceiling, and sharp ice bits covered almost every surface. As good as she was at causing destruction – and she was very adept – cleaning it up was something else altogether. Most of the time when she lost control, Elsa couldn't make the magic disappear again, which left Jack to clean up her messes, over and over again.

"Sure," Jack said with a smile. He waved his hand and the ice and snow vanished from sight, like they'd never been there. Nothing could be done about the cold, though. Elsa didn't mind. "Are you okay?" Jack asked softly. No. The short answer was no. Elsa was alone now, all alone, and she had a kingdom to run.

"Ask me tomorrow," she replied, her voice barely more than a whisper. "But for right now, I've got to take my own advice and keep moving."

* * *

**Ahhhhhh the pain. I made myself sad writing this. And I know that these chapters are a little clunky, but they're important for what's to come, I promise! Thank you all again for your amazing reviews and responses; they make me very happy!**

**Please review! Nice, long, detailed reviews telling me what you liked, what you didn't, etc. Remember, a fic without reviews is like Jack without his staff!**

**~Fae**


	4. Chapter 3

"May I present her Majesty, Elsa, Queen of Arendelle!" Those who had congregated in the large chapel burst into applause and Elsa tried for a smile, more focused on the royal orb and scepter in her hand than any of them. She knew that her father and mother's faces were looking at the crowd over her head, and desperately didn't want to disappoint them.

"YOU DID IT!" Jack shouted at the top of his lungs, cartwheeling in the air over the unsuspecting citizens. Elsa hid her smile by placing the royal artifacts back on their velvet pillow and slipping her gloves back on again. "El, you _did_ it!"

"Thank you everyone," Elsa said, addressing the crowd. "Now, please, enjoy the festivities!" She clapped her hands and the onlookers dispersed, all headed to the main ballroom where the party was going to be held.

"Well done, your Majesty," Archbishop Michaels said, patting her lightly on the back. Elsa stiffened at the touch, but smiled and inclined her head politely.

"Thank you, Archbishop," she said. "Please, enjoy the party."

"You were amazing, El," Jack said, lacing his fingers through hers. "Your parents would be so proud of you." Elsa looked down, a small smile turning her lips up.

"Thank you," she said softly, so that the remaining spectators couldn't hear her. She squeezed his hand and ice crackled where their skin touched. "I couldn't have done it without you, Jack."

"Damn I'm good."

Elsa rolled her eyes, still smiling. "Shut up." Then she frowned, noticing something missing. "Jack, have you seen Anna?" He opened his mouth and then closed it, looking around. "Franz," she said to a passing server. The man jumped, surprised that Elsa knew his name. "Would you please find my sister?" Elsa wanted Anna to be with her tonight.

"Yes, your Majesty," Franz said, bowing low and scurrying off.

"I'm sure she'll turn up," Jack said reassuringly.

He was right.

"Am I, uh, am I supposed to stand here?" Anna asked as Franz escorted her to the podium where Elsa had already been announced. "Oh, here," she said, sounding uncomfortable when the servant pulled her right next to Elsa.

"Princess Anna of Arendelle," the page announced, and crowd clapped before going back to the dancing.

"Hi," Elsa said, trying for lightness. She tried not to pull a face when she heard Jack snicker at the stiffness in her tone.

"Me?" Anna asked, her eyes wide with surprise. Part of Elsa wanted to laugh at her shock, another wanted to explain everything. "Uh, hi."

"You look beautiful," Elsa said truthfully. Her little sister wasn't so little anymore. Anna was beautiful, even if they looked nothing alike. Elsa had seen her catch the eyes of several of the guests.

"Thank you!" Anna replied brightly, warming more quickly than Elsa ever could. "You look beautifuller. I mean, not fuller…more beautiful…" she trailed off, plucking at the hem of her dress. Elsa laughed, a light easy laugh unlike anything she'd shared with her sister since they were children. Anna never had had a way with words. It was nice to know that some things stayed the same.

"So, this is what a party looks like," Elsa said, looking out on the dancing crowd. Everyone looked so happy. She wished…she wished it could always be like this.

"It's warmer than I thought," Anna blurted out. It must have been, for Anna to feel the warmth so close to Elsa.

"And what's that amazing smell?" Elsa asked, suddenly noticing the rich scent in the air. "Chocolate!" she and Anna said together. For the first time in forever, Elsa met her sister's eyes and they both smiled.

"Your Majesty," a page interrupted. Elsa wanted to send him away – didn't he see that she was talking with her sister? "May I present, the Duke of Wesleton." Jack cackled at the mispronunciation of the tiny, spectacled man's name and Elsa had to bite her lip to keep from laughing as well. Anna didn't fare so well.

"Your Highness," the short man said. "As your closest partner in trade, it seems only fitting that I offer you your first dance as queen." He bowed low and Jack appeared above him, a cold wind tipping his toupee out of place. Anna gasped and clasped her hands over her mouth to stifle her laughter. Jack lost his composure completely, soaring above the crowd with glee. Elsa snickered once before she regained control again.

"Thank you, but I don't dance," she said. Too easy a chance that someone could touch her skin. "But my sister does," she added as an afterthought.

"Oh, I…what?" Anna stumbled over the words as the Duke of Wesleton grabbed her hand and steered her onto the dance floor.

"Sorry," she mouthed as Anna stole a look back at her, glaring playfully.

"Did you just do something funny?" Jack asked, landing beside her, chuckling as they watched the two whirl around the dance floor. Elsa had to hand it to the Duke, he was agile for a man in heels. "Did you, Elsa, Snow Queen, hater of fun, and now Queen of Arendelle, just do something funny?" Jack laughed and Elsa tried to pass her smile off as amusement for the dancing. "How things change."

"Are you okay?" Elsa asked when Anna returned to her side, her voice bright with laughter.

"Actually, I've never been better. I wish it could be like this all the time."

"Me too," Elsa said, her smile fading. It couldn't be like this. She turned away. "But it can't."

"Well why not?" Anna said hopefully, grabbing For Elsa's arm. Elsa jerked away instinctively, years of warding herself from touching others racing to the surface.

"It just can't," she said shortly.

"Oh." Anna said and suddenly all Elsa wanted to do was apologize. For everything. Staying away, cloistering herself off, never trying to reconnect with Anna…all of it. "Please excuse me a minute." And then she was gone and Elsa lost her chance.

"I'm sorry," she said at her sister's retreating back.

* * *

Elsa tried to get away from the constant throng of well-wishers, but they were quite literally everywhere.

"Elsa!" Elsa turned quickly to see Anna pulling a dashingly-dressed man by the hand, both coming towards her, and a smile lit up her face. "I mean, queen," Anna amended. "Me again." Elsa opened her mouth to apologize for her shortness earlier, but Anna cut her off. "May I present, Hans, prince of the Southern Isles."

"I don't like the look of that guy," Jack said, eying the prince coolly. Elsa could feel the air grow colder with Jack's displeasure. Fortunately, neither Anna nor Hans seemed to notice.

"We," the prince said, "would like to ask for your blessing…of our marriage!" That wasn't what she'd been expecting. Elsa's face morphed into a mask of shock.

"Marriage?" she and Jack exclaimed together. "Excuse me, I'm confused," Elsa said, trying to remain calm as Jack spluttered "What the hell?"

"Well, we haven't worked out all the details…" Anna started. "Obviously we'd need a few days to plan the wedding. And _obviously _they'd stay here."

"They? Stay here?" Elsa parroted, her mind going blank with shock. No. No one could stay here, she could barely keep her powers a secret as it was. And _they_? Were there more princes her sister would be marrying out of the blue? How had this happened? Anna had only been gone for a few hours! "No. No one is staying here and no one is getting married."

"Wait, what?" Anna asked, looking hurt.

"Can I talk to you?" Elsa suggested, trying to keep her voice even. "Alone?"

"No." Anna snapped. "Anything you have to say, you can say to both of us."

Elsa took a deep breath, trying desperately to regain her regal, Ice Queen demeanor. "Fine. You can't marry a man you just met."

"You can if it's true love!" Anna protested.

"Oh for Christ's sakes," Jack swore. "Is she serious?" She was.

"You asked for my blessing, and I said no." Elsa fixed Hans with an icy stare. "And I think you should go. The party is over!" she announced to the crowd. "Close the gates." She needed to get away from here. She could feel her temper rising to the surface, the magic surging with it. She had to get back to her bedroom, she had to get somewhere safe.

"Elsa wait!" Anna cried, snatching at Elsa's arm and tearing off one of her gloves. Elsa whirled on her, her eyes frantic. She needed her gloves. She _needed _them! "Elsa, please! I can't live like this!" Anna said, clutching the glove to her chest.

"Then leave!" Elsa returned desperately, saying anything to be able to escape.

"Elsa, don't!" Jack advised. "You're going to hurt her."

"What did I ever do to you?" Anna demanded.

"Enough," Elsa said, holding her naked hand close to her heart and trying to stay in control.

"No!" Anna persisted. "Why do you shut me out? Why do you shut the _world_ out? What are you so afraid of?"

"I said, _enough_!" Elsa shouted, her voice ringing with power and magic. She spun without thinking, her ungloved hand flying in a low arc. Magic struck the ground, and where it did, icy stalagmites burst from the floor, almost skewering Anna and several guests.

"Sorcery!" someone cried. Elsa gasped, horrified, and she looked up to see disgust and fear in the eyes of every one of her guests.

"Elsa?" Anna said, her voice small and questioning like it was when she was a child.

"Get her!" the Duke of Wesleton screamed.

"Elsa, run!" Jack said frantically, grabbing her hand and pulling her forward. For once, she didn't care about looking ladylike or stately. For once, she ran with him.

"The Queen!" the citizens outside shouted when Elsa threw open the dorr. They cheered and called her name. They hadn't heard what had happened inside. "Your Majesty?" a woman with her child asked, stopping Elsa in her tracks. "Are you alright?"

"Come on!" Jack urged, but there were too many to get through. Elsa backed away, her hands hitting the fountain that sat in the center of the courtyard. At her touch, the burbling water froze solid, making a fearsome shape where water once flowed cheerfully.

"There she is!" the Duke shouted from the open doorway of the castle. "Stop her!" He and his men started running down the steps, but Elsa was paralyzed, too terrified to move.

"Leave her alone!" Jack snarled, an icy blast exploding from his hands and freezing the stairs solid. The Duke and his men were blasted backwards, rattled but unharmed.

"Please, just stay away from me," Elsa pleased, finally able to speak again. She hated the rattling in her voice.

"Monster!" the Duke proclaimed, never having lost his voice in the first place.

"No…" Elsa protested. "I'm not!" But the people had seen what she could do. Fear and anger dawned on their faces, and suddenly they began to converge on her, like a malevolent wave. Jack grabbed her hand and Elsa took off, barreling through the crowd, who parted for her easily.

"Elsa!" At the sound of Anna's voice, Elsa wanted to stop and turn back. But she saw Prince Hans and the Duke close behind and kept running, until she reached the lake.

"Come on," Jack said urgently, his eyes shining with fear. "You can freeze it, Elsa," he promised. "We have to run!" Elsa held her breath, almost convinced that when she took a step that she would plunge into the water, but it froze solid like Jack had said. Hand in hand, and hearing Anna scream her name from the shore, Elsa sprinted across the lake, trailing ice with every step.

The tears on her cheeks were frozen too.

* * *

**First, an apology. I know I have not updated for several weeks. It was the end of the semester, which, naturally, meant that all my teachers assigned absurd amounts of work, all due the same time. To make it up to you all, I didn't let myself sleep until this new chapter was uploaded. **

**Secondly, praise. I had no idea that this story would receive the kind of positive feedback that it has, and for that, and all of my readers and reviewers, I am supremely grateful. Thank you all**

**Thirdly, please review! They really do make my day, and the longer the review, the happier I am. Remember, a fic without reviews is a frostless Jack Frost.**

**Merry Christmas, all**

**~Fae**


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